


What Happened After

by commodore_dragon



Series: psiberpunk au [2]
Category: Persona 2, Persona Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Cyberpunk, Alternate Universe - Psychics/Psionics, Bad Medical Ethics, Childhood Trauma, Cyberpunk, FTM Tatsuya Suou, Get ready for another slow burn fellas, Human subject research, Multi, Psychic Abilities, Telepathy, Trans Male Character, removed memories
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-21
Updated: 2021-01-08
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:01:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 1,462
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26521072
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/commodore_dragon/pseuds/commodore_dragon
Summary: Maybe we forget some things for a reason.And maybe some things weren't meant to be forgotten.-----An extension of the AU from 08182089.mp4, in drabble-collection format.
Relationships: Amano Maya/Serizawa Ulala, Suou Tatsuya/Baofu
Series: psiberpunk au [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1928428
Comments: 2
Kudos: 10





	1. Chapter 1

Growing up, Tatsuya thought there was a river behind his house. He didn't know that his family was too low-grade for anything like that. During the day it had a rainbowish sheen, and at night it reflected neon signs in every color known to man, and he thought it was something wonderful. He let himself imagine that animals lived there when he wasn't looking, maybe even big ones like he'd seen in videos. He wasn't disappointed when he saw a little white cat approach his river, only to run away after sniffing the water. That was more about how his father dragged him inside to yell at him for splashing around in a drainage ditch. Tatsuya didn't go back there again, and eventually he forgot about it.

He's sitting in class, years later. They're supposed to be learning about the ecological crisis of the 2030s, and the nature preserves that were created to prevent mass extinction. Somehow the lesson involves singing the praises of Wakai Security for stopping poachers. Instead, he stares at an image from the assigned reading - a lion drinking from a stream - waiting for it to become clear as to why that would spark a hazy memory of jumping into an iridescent puddle.  
"Suou! Are you listening?"  
"No." He simply shakes his head. The teacher sighs, and taps her screen. In his pocket, his phone buzzes to inform him that he's been given another demerit - at this rate, he'll be back in the counselor's office by the end of the week.

He doesn't go inside after arriving at home. The wind is as cold as it gets, but he stands behind his house and shivers into his jacket, waiting like whatever he's looking for is just under the ice. But the memory doesn't get any clearer, and Tatsuya becomes keenly aware that he's standing outside like an idiot, letting his fingers go numb. As he turns back, he sees someone pass through the alleyway, out of the corner of his eye - but when he looks, he's still alone.


	2. Chapter 2

SUBJECT NAME: Suou, Nobuyo  
AGE: 8  
SEX: F  
REPORT: Subject displays advanced reciever telepathy. Preliminary testing indicates this requires little effort. Interviews with subject suggest the ability is unconscious.

UPDATE: Subject is capable of broadcast telepathy. Reciever telepathy has been proven unconscious, possibly involuntary. Subject expressed reluctance to further testing.

UPDATE: Reciever telepathy has been proven involuntary. Researchers expressed concern that "she's always listening to us". Subject became uncooperative for the remainder of time allotted.

NOTES: _Researchers are to be reminded that this subject is easily provoked. - J. K._

UPDATE: Subject has grown increasingly hostile. Continued research is becoming difficult.

NOTES: _Would it really be the end of the world if someone else stayed in the room? - T. S._

_Request denied. - J. K._

File locked on 08-19-2089.

Research suspended.


	3. Chapter 3

Lisa's parents had always been fond of history. She still doesn't understand why. What's the point of a dusty old book if it's too valuable to read? Who cares about floppy discs and fires in Edo? Why spend all your time worrying about the past when there's so much to do in the present? And it's so much more _fun_ doing things than learning about people who did. More important than that, though, is that the past is never new.  
It feels like she finds something new and better every day. The newsviewer that finds what she wants to know without being told. A varicloth skirt that she can match to whatever she's wearing. New toys aren't cheap, though, and she doesn't have that kind of pocket money. Her parents could pay for it, of course, but they don't need to know _everything_ she's getting up to. Not when there are always people willing to pay to spend time with a pretty girl. They're not even hard to find. And she knows the drill - as long as they stay in public, it's safe. The people themselves come and go, but she gets comfortable with the arrangement. Maybe a bit _too_ comfortable.   
The lady with the pointed nose seems different from the rest - bold, energetic, emotional. She talks about Lisa's _potential_ , she knows what Lisa really wants without having to ask. And after going out to dinner a few times, after a few aquarium dates, she decides that the lady is genuine. She lets herself get talked into coming back to this party her friend Yasuo is having. And she was... wildly underprepared. There's broken glass on the ground. Someone is trying to eat a raw potato. There's a boy dying his hair purple in the sink. It's sheer fucking chaos. And Lisa doesn't want to be there anymore.  
There's only reasonable thing she can do: hide. She tells her date that she needs to go to the bathroom, and that she'll be back in a minute. Practically as soon as the door closes behind her, she crumples. Her eyes are squeezed shut, and she hugs herself awkwardly, desperately wishing she was home instead. There's a strange sort of _thud_ , that makes her open her eyes to see what's going on.   
And she realizes that she's in her own bedroom.


	4. Chapter 4

SUBJECT NAME: Silverman, Elisabeth  
AGE: 7  
SEX: F  
REPORT: Subject is capable of basic teleportation. The potential applications make this a promising avenue of research. Testing will begin at the earliest convenience. 

UPDATE: Subject's control over the ability is limited. Research indicates it may be part of the acute stress response. Until this can be verified, researchers are encouraged to avoid putting the subject under unnecessary distress. 

UPDATE: Subject is incapable of teleporting objects beyond those in the subject's possession. In addition, the excess air transported creates noise that reveals both the point of departure and arrival, and the subject can only access locations that are already known. Practical applications may be limited.

UPDATE: Mechanism of action is still unknown. The subject does not pass through the intermediate space, and does not experience inertia while in transit. Further research is still needed. 

File locked on 08-19-2089.

Research suspended.


	5. Chapter 5

Not everyone can build fame out of second-hand supplies. Technically, Eikichi hasn't done it either. But he will. He has to. He can't live the way his father does. He _can't_ stay in that stupid restaurant for the rest of his life, making food for people who waste more money than he'll make in his life. But, as his father won't let him forget, their family has always worked for themselves - no one else cares about them.   
His only way out is to _make_ them care. And that's exactly what he's going to do. He's going to turn himself and his friends into a band that's a household name. Even if they have to start with pawn-shop instruments and hand-me-down clothes. It's a stepping stone to something greater.   
He keeps reminding himself of that - they have to start somewhere - as he checks the cardboard box for something he can use. Shogo had gathered up some stuff his mother was trying to get rid of, and brought it back to see if anyone else wanted it. It's a bit picked over, at this point, but there's still a few gems. The night shades look pretty cool, even if the cameras are broken. Actually, he can't tell if they work at all - the sky is bright and full of cotton clouds. And there's this necklace, golden with a little crescent moon on it...  
It happens as soon as he closes his fingers around it. A blurry whirlwind of a scene, and a series of ideas: someone giving that necklace as a gift, and making a promise. The same someone breaking that promise, and the heart of the necklace's owner. The necklace getting bitterly stashed in a drawer.  
Only a few seconds pass before Shogo realizes what Eikichi's holding. "Oh, hey. That's my mom's. I don't think she meant to throw that out." He's more than happy to hand it over to him.   
Eikichi wishes his imagination wouldn't run away with him like that. 


	6. Chapter 6

SUBJECT NAME: Mishina, Eikichi  
AGE: 6  
SEX: M  
REPORT: Subject's ability is unknown. Initial recommendation involved subject showing knowledge that should not have been available. Possibly possesses some form of telepathy.

UPDATE: Subject's ability appears to be related to objects. The subject has been proven incapable of interpersonal telepathy. Testing procedures will be modified. 

UPDATE: Subject is capable of "reading" past events related to a given object. Testing suggests events with an emotional charge are easier to "read".

NOTES: _I'd like to ask the researchers to stop getting so frustrated when the kid makes a mistake, he's only six. - T. S._

_Noted. - J. K._

UPDATE: Subject is becoming largely uncooperative. Researchers are looking for suggestions to improve morale. 

File locked on 08-19-2089.

Research suspended.


End file.
